


Surely You Gest

by Copyrightdragon



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: I Tried, I don't even know any sign language, I don't know how to write sign language, I'm Sorry, Insecure James T. Kirk, James T. Kirk Has Issues, Jealous Nyota Uhura, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-11
Updated: 2020-12-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:08:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28005159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Copyrightdragon/pseuds/Copyrightdragon
Summary: Spock is aware that language is far more than the phrases we say and the pieces we break them down into. It's a well-known fact that gesture and body language predate speaking and writing as a form of communication in every single culture in the known galaxy. Perhaps that's why his teaching assistant's sign language affects him so deeply. What it is socially acceptable for one's hands to do is very strictly limited on Vulcan due to their... significance, and he is terribly certain that none of the gestures Mr. Kirk makes with his, acceptable as they may be here on Earth, fall within that range.
Relationships: Christopher Pike & Spock, James T. Kirk & Christopher Pike, James T. Kirk & Leonard "Bones" McCoy, James T. Kirk/Spock
Comments: 4
Kudos: 70





	Surely You Gest

Commander Spock had never anticipated being asked to do adjunct lectures for the xenolinguistics department while at Starfleet Academy. His specialty has always been, and would likely always continue to be, in the sciences. He’d inherited basic skills and knowledge of linguistics from his mother through her very Human desire to spend recreational time with him. As he got older, he found that he would rather put that time towards more academic pursuits, and the compromise they settled on was that she would teach him methods of phonetic and phonologic analysis, knowledge of syntactical structures, grammar, theories behind the evolution of languages, parts of her field that appealed to his science-oriented mind.

Aside from coding languages and Binary, Spock had never deemed any language other than his native Vulcan and Standard necessary to learn. Thus, it was unexpected when the Academy approached him with the proposed class. The fact that it fit neatly into his schedule was, he deduced, Captain Pike’s doing, as he was the only officer Spock was aware of that actively kept tabs on his activities. The emotional side of him that he’d chosen not to purge from himself was content, if a little underwhelmed, to serve as a programming aide and lab supervisor. It gave him the unfettered access to Starfleet’s databases and testing labs he required to perform research on his own time.

Grounded while the fleet’s new flagship was under construction, as a part of its future bridge crew, Spock had thrown himself into his academic pursuits in order to fill the large gaps of time he found himself with. He, of course, kept his body in peak condition with regular meditation, performances of Suhs-mana katas, and adequate sleep and nutrition, yet Captain Pike seemed adamant upon trying to break his routine. He would ask him out to meals, send students and other professors to consult with him on their research, and had even assigned him as the lead programmer on the Kobiyashi Maru simulation.

Just as before, Spock had no sufficient reason to turn down the posting and acquiesced to the proposition without complaint. It was thus unexpected, once again, when Captain Pike messaged him to meet over dinner and discuss his new teaching position. The class schedule for the coming semester had no time conflicts. He had an adequate time period in which to plan out the lessons. There were enough gaps in his schedule to accommodate office hours. It was not so out of his realm of purview that he was an illogical choice for the task. He had accepted with no questions asked. What there could be to discuss that concerned his Captain, he could not fathom, but Humans tended to be illogical creatures, and so he assented, precedent telling him that the man was most likely acting on emotion, wanting to congratulate him in some manner as his mother often did for small things.

When he met Captain Pike at an establishment off-campus that was different from the usual, slightly more upscale, restaurant they went to, he found the man sitting at a table with three place settings. He nodded politely, since Captain Pike had previously expressed displeasure with being saluted in “informal settings”. The Captain looked up with a smile.

“Evening, Mr. Spock. Please, have a seat.” He nodded to the chair on his right. “I hope you don’t mind, but I took the liberty of ordering a pot of tea for the table. Have you ever had chrysanthemum tea?” The half-Vulcan shook his head, not familiar with the more obscure types of Terran tea. His mother usually drank jasmine or green. “Well, it isn’t sweetened or caffeinated, so it should be fine for you to drink.”

“Query.”

“Mm?”

“For whom is the third place setting?” The Captain smiled again, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

“Your teaching assistant, of course. I figured it would be better if you got to know each other outside of a classroom setting.” Spock tilted his head, curious as to the reasoning behind the idea. If his relationship with this person was to be a professional one, then to spend time together outside of their mutual working environment was illogical. This made the Captain chuckle. “It’s a very Human thing to do, Mr. Spock; we spend time with our co-workers in order to better communicate, work out conflicts, personality differences, the like. We consider a lack of socializing among coworkers unusual or sometimes even mildly unhealthy.”

“Fascinating.” It certainly explained a lot of the Captain’s previous attempts to encourage him joining in recreational activities. A waiter dressed entirely in black came by with a perfectly balanced tray, nodded politely to the two of them, set the tea pot and three small porcelain cups down, and left them to their amicable silence.

“This establishment also differs from our conventional meeting place; is it for the teaching assistant that you have chosen here for our meeting?” The other man chuckled as he checked to see how the tea was steeping.

“You’re two for two, Mr. Spock. I figured that Asian food would suit you both perfectly, since there’s such a wide variety of options. His shift ended about fifteen minutes ago, so he should be here soon.” Spock nodded, pushing his cup over politely when the Human offered to pour him some tea. When it was nudged back, he lifted it to his nose, appreciating the delicate aroma, before giving a small sip. It was satisfactory, not as overpowering as jasmine, with a sweet note that faded rapidly out into a pleasingly floral aftertaste.

“You were correct in your assessment of the tea, Captain.” Knowing Spock well enough to catch the compliment hidden in his words, he gave him a lopsided grin.

“I knew you’d like it.”

“Is this person consistently tardy?” Captain Pike’s eyebrows rose, and he sighed, seeing he probably should’ve expected Spock to value punctuality so highly and thus scheduled the dinner a bit later.

“No, but I did pick a restaurant that’s a little far away from the central library on campus, which is where he works. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s on a tram, right now, debating if it’d be faster to just run all the way here.” He shook his head and chuckled again. “I’m sorry for wasting your time, Mr. Spock. I should’ve set the meeting a little bit later.” The half-Vulcan accepts his apology with a stiff nod.

“Your apology is accepted.” He made a mental note to inquire after this person’s work schedule and commute times to better arrange any future meetings between. Before he could say anything else, Captain looked up, and, presumably noticing their third party member, stood and beamed at someone over Spock’s shoulder. Turning to follow the Human’s gaze, his own eyes landed on another Human, this one more wiry and with fairer hair and lighter eyes than his Captain, hurrying over to their table with a matching grin. He weaved around the tables and waitstaff to get to them, set his bag down unceremoniously next to the seat by the empty place setting, and embraced Captain Pike with no hesitation whatsoever. This gesture is returned in earnest, the older man laughing, before pulling away and motioning for him to take his seat. Only after doing so does he seem to even notice that Spock is there, donning an expression of mild surprise before flashing the ta’al and giving a deep nod. A little surprised himself, Spock returned the gesture.

“Greetings. I am Commander S’chn T’gai Spock.” The blond gave him a bright smile before performing a rapid series of hand movements and changing facial expressions in response. Spock thought he’d schooled his features quickly to remain appropriately stoic at the complete and utter shock of seeing someone be so expressive _with their hands_ , a Vulcan erogenous zone, but the young Human’s faltering expression and gestures indicated otherwise. They both looked to Captain Pike, who was clearly hiding a smirk behind the tea cup he held up to his lips.

“Mr. Spock, this is Mr. James T. Kirk. He may be a mute, but he is fluent in several non-Terran languages, both spoken and signed. I’m hoping that Mr. Kirk will help impress the importance of gestures and body language as a method of communication on to the new recruits. Not every species out there communicates solely with spoken or written languages, as I’m sure you’re well aware, Mr. Spock.”


End file.
